Rental Operations

DriveNow Expands Car Sharing in SF

DriveNow, a car-sharing program and BMW Group subsidiary, has announced it will extend its offerings in San Francisco by adding more street parking options and 80 more electric BMW ActiveE vehicles to its existing fleet.

This will bring the total number of ActiveE vehicles in DriveNow’s SF program to 150, says the company. In a two-week social media challenge (May 9-23), DriveNow members will get the change to name the 80 electric vehicles. The selected names will appear on the car sticker in the DriveNow app and website.

Additionally, DriveNow has expanded its street parking options by allowing members to use the DriveNow app or website to locate, reserve and park cars on specific streets between Potrero Avenue and Folsom Street and between 16th Street and 26th Street.

“DriveNow with street parking is available in several cities across Europe, and it has been a very successful business model, so we are pleased to bring street parking to the U.S.,” said Richard Steinberg, CEO of DriveNow USA. “By expanding our offerings in San Francisco, our members will find it is more convenient than ever to find and park a DriveNow vehicle.”

The in-car screen and the DriveNow app will inform members which streets are approved for parking, says the company. If a DriveNow member attempts to end a reservation in a non-sanctioned DriveNow drop-off zone, the in-car screen will alert the driver that the reservation cannot be ended and help identify the appropriate streets for parking.

By the end of 2014, DriveNow plans to extend street parking to include the San Francisco areas of Bernal Heights, Haight Ashbury, Noe Valley, North Panhandle (NOPA), Alamo Square and Potrero Hill, says the company.

Under the agreement with Club EagleRider, the $29 initiation fee is waived. For $29 a month, AMA members can use the program to "try before you buy" specific models of motorcycles and "pack a bike in your suitcase" to use while traveling.

On-demand business models are rapidly evolving as car rental, car sharing, ride-hailing, and public transport are merging into Mobility-as-a-Service platforms. Experimentation is critical to help resolve untested legal issues around data management, liability, and duty of care.